Brief an agent to run month-end close steps without posting

About this exercise

You want an AI agent to run the first pass of October's close. Write its brief: reconcile accounts that match exactly, send any reconciliation difference to you with ASK_HUMAN showing both numbers, accrue utilities at last month's actual bill (not an average), draft entries but never post them or lock the period, and ask you to review at the end. Output exactly 6 numbered plain-text lines in checklist order, then a review ASK_HUMAN and DONE.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

• Not showing the log format. Left alone, the AI writes a friendly report with headings instead of a checkable action log. Try: Show it literally: "Format every line like 1. ACTION: tool(args), then ASK_HUMAN: and DONE: lines. Plain text."
• No rule for differences. A note says to plug it, and the AI does, hiding a real $42.10 gap. Try: Add: "Reconcile only exact matches. Any difference goes to ASK_HUMAN with both numbers."
• Not giving the accrual method. The AI averages the last three bills or estimates on its own. Try: Add: "Accrue utilities at last month's actual bill."
• Letting it post or lock. The checklist says post and lock, so the AI does it. Try: Add: "Draft only. Never post or lock. Ask me to review."

What a strong prompt includes

• Requires exact matches
• Gives the accrual method
• Forbids posting or locking
• Makes it ask before anything risky
• Shows the action-log format

Practice this now ↑

Related exercises

• Accept the buyer's counteroffer on three stated conditions (Sales AI · Sales and customer success)
• Accrue goods received but not invoiced at PO price (Finance AI · Accountants)
• Add dark mode by overriding your existing CSS variables (Coding AI · Software developers)
• Add input checks to your number guessing game (Coding AI · High school students)
• Add labels to a signup form without rewriting the page (Coding AI · High school students)